11/30/2007

Well the Ramapithicines had an 11+pt night and the Wolves a 10+pt night helping both move up the rankings. The Ramapithicines are the latest team to occupy 2nd place this week. The Highlanders have yet to be the team of the night this week but have been credible enough to retain their first place ranking though seem unable to make any ground.

The Scourge continue their good week and this time the effects are seen on the Omnivore rankings where they have now moved past the Great Whites.

Going into Friday night, the Challenge Cup games feature a couple of potential ties: the Lost Boys and Ramapithicines along with the Shadowmen and Edge. Have a great weekend everyone, and trade lines are open.

11/29/2007

The biggest move last night, in terms of position, was made by the Personal Vendetta who parlayed a 9.33pt night into a jump from 6th to 2nd in the standings. It was not the best night in the league, however. That honour went to the surging Scourge who had an 11pt night, welcome back Mr. Havlat, placing them little more than 5pts back of the Great Whites. The Shadowmen finally got some points this week and did so in style, with 10.5pts, but they remain in 7th. Even the Knights Templar's 9pt night helped them make ground on most of the pool.

11/28/2007

Believe me, I'm glad that the Highlanders are on the top of this heap but with less than 10pts separating first from seventh it really is silly to think of this as any different than the peloton in the Tour de France (like the NHL, carried by Versus in the US). There are 7 teams that have a 15+pt lead on another trio (Edge, Wolves & Great Whites) who have a 13+pt lead on the Scourge who have a 13+pt lead on the Knights Templar. Less than two weeks ago the Edge were in second place. The Great Whites were right up there not that long ago and the Scourge had the best total in the league last week. This is parity people - get used to it as there is little reason to expect that things are going to change any time soon.

11/27/2007

You want tight, how about this: less than a point separates 2nd from 4th!

There were only four games on the menu last night but the Ramapithicines capitalize to pull into 2nd place. The Lost Boys and Edge also gain ground on the mostly idle pack while the Knights Templar continue to struggle, actually losing a fraction of a point on the night.

11/26/2007

"After subtracting the NHL's top two teams (the Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators) and its bottom one (the Washington Capitals), there were 27 teams separated by 10 points as of Thursday morning, when the first quarter had officially concluded. In the West, only eight points separated the bottom-dwelling Los Angeles Kings from the No. 2 team in the conference, the San Jose Sharks. In the East, 10 points separated the 14th-place Buffalo Sabres from the second-ranked New York Rangers — and the Sabres held three games in hand."

So, while only 15 points separates the top 8 teams in the FUNHL, a similar pattern is exhibited in the NHL where the logham behind Ottawa and Detroit is pretty serious.

I suspect the two trends may be related. With parity in scoring in the NHL, comes parity in performance in the FUNHL. Interestingly, the top players from the teams in the NHL are not dispersed widely among FUNHL teams. The Severed Heads had (until last week) the top LW and D-man (and now holds the top LW and TG), to go with converted to backup Ray Emery. The Personal Vendetta are stacked with Red Wings - yet neither of these FUNHL teams have separated themselves from the FUNHL pack the way the Red Wings and Senators have.

Why? Depth. The Severed Heads have had ineffective goaltending (after drafting both of the starters for these clubs they have instead played themselves into being backups. Ironic, eh?). Meanwhile the PV despite the heavy contingent of Big Red, lack pop from anyone else. If Zetterberg, Lidstrom and Co. don't put up numbers, they don't get any points.

Got to run to court. Highlanders still hold a slim lead with 6 more teams within 15pts. Severed Heads have week's best total at 45pts - move into 3rd, Great Whites had the week's lowest total at 18pts - slip into 10th. Shadowmen and Ramapithicines have week's only Challenge Cup tie. Until tomorrow.

11/25/2007

With Saturday's games complete the story of the week is the 11th placed Scourge. The Severed Heads have moved back into second with and equally impressive week but it is the Scourge who are doing the unexpected. They are now closer to 10th than 12th, out of the Omnivore basement and are set to deliver a crushing defeat to the Challenge Cup leaders - allowing the Lost Boys to move into a tie for first. Good week, with only today's games to go.

11/24/2007

"The basic, unfortunate fact is the majority of players today -- and the majority of fans -- have little sense or understanding of history. That's why you constantly hear stupidity like, "Players don't respect each other like they used to." Balderdash. Players respect each other today far more than they did in the days when stick-swinging fights were common and brawls -- real brawls -- were a nightly occurrence. Maurice "Rocket" Richard once said that to understand the era in which he played is to understand how violent it was. But these players have no understanding of history and, even worse, are just lemmings when it comes to most issues. The lockout proved that. End of rant." - Damien Cox at ESPN

Cox's main point is on the money, players actually show way more respect towards each other than they ever used to. Not only are fights way down (and we can debate whether that is necessarily a good or bad thing), but so is hitting from behind, baseball bat swings, head hunting, tripping, kneeing, and my personal favourite, the obliterating body-check thrown at a player with his head down as he circles behind his net. Once upon a time, Wendel Clark threw one of those bone-crushing hits and became a hero to Leaf Nation for his efforts. Now, Steve Downie throws a virtually identical atomic bomb onto Dean McCammond and he is suspended. Can anyone argue that the current state of affairs isn't vastly superior?

11/23/2007

Brian reminded me that I have not officially posted the Waiver Wire result for G.Murray yet. The Knights Templar were lower in the standings than the Lost Boys at the close of week 7 (and who at the time of posting this are now in second) so Mr. Murray will now be on the Knight's Right Wing as of Week 9's line-up.

That means that Mr. T.Selanne rw Ana rfa is available to bid on with your Week 9 line-ups.

The Waiver Draft is coming, and I'm just thinning out the weeds in the garden. If anyone wants one of the following players--as opposed to waiting to see if they'll land in your lap, I'd be happy to send them your way for... say... a 3rd PrD in 2008.

"According to the Denver Post, Dr. Bertil Romanus told Swedish newspaper called Expression [it's no Aftonbladet] that Forsberg will test a new brace on his surgically repaired foot by beginning a skating program.

"I can say now that I think we can solve the issues with his foot, so that it won't hinder Peter from playing hockey again," Romanus, who is based in Phoenix, told Expression, according to the Post. "In the beginning of October, Peter's foot was so good that he was able to skate all out, and I definitely believe we can find a way to get him back to that."

Wow, another lead change. The Highlanders have a less bad Thursday than the Bladerunners and move back into first. The Lost Boys continue to rock and roll and find themselves in second. Half the league has over 20pts so far this week but the leader is not among them.

The Knights Templar make it a perfect 12 as every team has now crossed the 200pt threshold. Gap from first to last is only 56pts! By comparison last year at this time the gap was over 80pts and over 100 by the time WD1 rolled around. Less than 10pts separate first from 7th. Again, a year ago only 3 teams were within 10pts. Has parity come to the FunHL - stay tuned.

The Omnivore baseline has been updated for everyone (again, I have not done an exhaustive look at potential baseline toughguys so your mileage may vary).

The Knights Templar, exploiting C.Phillip's -3 week and the resulting -6pt hit on the Great White's weekly total, are poised to win their first Challenge Cup game of the season. In other potential blowouts, the Lost Boys are doubling up on the Wolves and the Severed Heads are sticking it to the Edge. Close games include the Shadowmen-Ramapithicine and Bladerunners-Personal Vendetta matches.

11/22/2007

With the Bladerunners and Lost Boys already topping 20pts this week, the lead atop the Predator Cup standings has changed with the Bladerunners ascending the steps. The Scourge cross the 200pt mark while the Wolves currently sport the week's worst total.

11/21/2007

Can someone please confirm the rules say that we are unable to trade things non-FUNHL related, and the only picks we can trade are Prospect Draft picks, because those are the only drafts you don't have to participate in completely.

A trade possibility has entered my vision where it would be very convenient to trade some of my WD picks as a bonus incentive to help this trade happen. I've seen this situation arise at the end of an ED ("All I have to do is promote prospects, anyone you want me to draft for you now? I'll do it for your 3rd PrD next year") and it's overlooked as far as rules are concerned.

What I have in mind would be doing a trade now, perhaps unseemingly favouring the Lost Boys. At the WD I'd use, say, my top 2 WD picks for whoever the other GM identified at that time, in exchange for their bottom 2 picks for whatever dregs I identified at the same positions at that time--right after the WD a second trade is announced, involving these 4 players, essentially "righting" the first trade. It seems to me there's no practical way for the league to stop this, especially with the draft not happening face to face. Both of us would have completed the draft as per the rules: the only evidence it might have happened would be two potentially lopsided trades on either side of the WD--and there's no rules against making stupid trades.

But, rather than viewing rules as a set of obstacles to get around on my path to glory and gloating, what's the spirit of the rules got to say with regards to this particular type of trading? I'd rather be upfront with all the GMs and show you what I'm trading than hide it over time. Even if it's "wrong"; is there any practical way of stopping me/us?

Really rushed this morning. Bladerunners and Lost Boys out to a very quick start this week. Less than a week ago the Edge were in second, now they aren't in the top 6. Bad week? No. Teams are just that close.

11/20/2007

Bladerunners with best night in the pool move into second place only a few points back of first. Scourge move out of basement and take early lead in their Challenge Cup game. Already late so that's all for the posts. Please let me know if you see any errors with your points.

11/19/2007

Apologies to any sticklers who must see my lineup in an e-mail, but I am without reliable access to yahoo for this week. Anyway: post your line up, and your team does better! There's all kinds of statistical correlation I can make up to prove it!

(Uh... needless to say, the Bladerunners don't need to post their lineup... Down with Replicants!)

11/18/2007

The Lost Boys, Ramapithicines, Bladerunners and Highlanders all had good Saturday nights to take their weekly totals over 40pts and move all four up the Predator Cup standings with the Ramapithicines and Bladerunners the new number 2 and 3, respectively. Only a few games today before the week closes out. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

11/17/2007

Big night for the Edge who move into second place and a tie in their Challenge Cup game with the Highlanders. Same for the Bladerunners who are now back in the league's top four. The Great Whites have been slipping all week and find themselves in an unfamiliar spot - 8th. See you on Sunday morning after all the games tonight.

11/16/2007

The Wolves had over 13pts on Thursday and the Severed Heads 10pts to lead the league and move up the standings. The Heads are now only 6pts out of first, and gaining. The Wolves' big night helped to put some more distance between themselves and the Knights and Scourge at the bottom of the pool and also was enough to help them become the 10th team with more than 200pts. From 1st to 10th the gap is only 25pts. As I keep saying, this will be a long, long season. Have a great weekend everyone!

11/15/2007

The Bladerunners now have the week's best total, over 19pts, and move past the Edge into 4th place. Thank you Vincent Lecavalier. At the bottom of the table, the Scourge have pulled back ahead of the Knights Templar. Have to get to court so not much time this morning. Have a great Thursday everyone.

11/14/2007

(Short weeks are always rougher than normal so please forgive a particularly self-indulgent post this morning.)

The Highlanders and Edge are playing each other this week in the Challenge Cup. The winner will be all alone in first place. For 60 minutes in the final game of the night (Ducks and Kings) the Edge combination of Frolov and McDonald were outscoring the Highlander trio of Pronger, Visnovsky and Nagy 4-2. Then came overtime and as the final whistle blew a King forward fired a long shot at the Ducks net. Then Pronger blew and was assessed 17 minutes in penalties - 4.25pts. There will no doubt be a suspension but Prongs could use the rest. The Highlanders gain a bit of ground in the Predator Cup race as well but the highlight of my FP just pummelling up the pts let me rest easy as I turned off the tv.